Scoping study: Review of ageing and the demands of firefighting August 2011

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The New Firefighters Pension Scheme (NFPS), introduced from 6th April 2006 and open to all firefighters as an opt-out scheme, includes a normal retirement age of 60. The Hutton proposals for the Firefighters Pension Scheme (FPS), the scheme preintroduction of the NFPS which closed to new entrants on 5th April 2006, also includes a recommendation to consider a new normal retirement age of 60. However, the FBU is concerned that there has never been any evidence developed or considered on the ability of firefighters to perform operationally beyond the age of 55. As a result they have never agreed or endorsed the retirement age of 60 and support a normal retirement age for the NFPS equal to that in the FPS of 55.

As a further complication, it is understood that all potential redeployment opportunities, which could previously have been used as a means to enable firefighters to remain in employment but in a nonoperational role (a role with the same salary but no operational requirement), have now been closed, as Fire and Rescue Authorities have converted these posts to nonuniformed roles to save salary costs.